Proposal Information for 2013A-0048

CoI: Ray Jayawardhana, University of TorontoCoI: David Lafreniere, University of MontrealCoI: John Gizis, University of DelawareCoI: Mariangela Bonavita, Univ. of Toronto

Title: Proper motion follow-up of young planet and brown dwarf candidates in Sco-Cen

Abstract:
In previous surveys of the young Sco-Cen region, we and others have
discovered a number of substellar companions with separations of up to
several hundreds of AU, some of which have mass ratios to the primary star of
only 1%. Such properties challenge both star and planet formation mechanisms.
Motivated by this issue, we started a NICI survey of a larger sample of stars
in Sco-Cen in 2011A (GS-2011Q-44). In total, 138 stars have been observed in
the survey, with 55 detected candidates having been followed up in 2012A to
test for common proper motion. We have already confirmed and published 3 new
substellar companions from this survey. We now propose to perform the final
follow-up efforts by observing 11 remaining targets. With a minor requirement
of 2.2 hours, these observations will finalize the survey, potentially yield
the widest, youngest, and lowest-mass planetary systems ever imaged directly,
and provide key insights to the formation and early evolution of planets.